News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1887-01-06
THE CHICAGO PACKER,
THE NOTABLE ..pHIL,, ARMOUR.
Owes Everything to His Sc tch Parents
How he deals with his own Family-Re-
Iations to His WOrkin gmen-How He
Orks Himself.


From the Albany Journall
Recalling his life at CaZenOvi', Mr..
Armour said, with a twinkle in his eye,
that but for his little love affair he prob
ably never would have gone West to
start anew amid circumstances that have
developed so wonderfully and given him
his present distinction. Mr.. Armour, in
a modest way. ascribes his success in
life wholly to the training that his father
and mother gave him. From his earliest
recollections his father took him into his
entire confidence. All the children
were allowed by the father to be part
ners with him in all business affairs. If
a son wanted money he was told Iv the
father, "You know where the wallet is,
go and help yourself" The mother i'm
pressed upon the children's minds the
conviction that they must never live be-
yond their incomes, and the children
were inspired with the belief that what
she said and did was always right. Mr..
Armour relates with smile how his
mother was in the habit every Saturday
evening of taking the boys down to the
creek and giving them thorough wash
ing; how she would begin by pouring
some of her home made soft soap on
their heads and then rub it in. Gotten"
he says, ''when the soap suds were run
ing into my eyes, making them smart
like fire, l felt as though l would like to
bite my mothers hand, but l knew bet
ter than to do it. ] felt her power was
supreme, and that must submit, as it
was for the best" In the training of
his own children Mr.. Armour has adopt
ed the methods so successfully carried
out by his parents.
When he took his son into business he
placed a million dollars to the credit of
the young man and gave him his full
confidence. The son did not abuse that
confidence nor waste a dollar, because
he took it as a matter of course that he
was his fathers partner, and that he had
a share in his fathers immense wealth
and its conCequent responsibilities.
The confidence which Mr.. Armour
places in his children, and which they
place in him, is most implicit. When
he sent his son TO Europe, and the young
man asked him how much money he
should take, the father replied, 81 don't
know; take whatever you want" The
son refused to name any amount and the
father finally had to provide him with
what he thought necessary, with in
structions to draw for whatever else he
needed. This confidence that is be-
slowed from earliest childhood results
in the establishment of relation of in
timacy and of honorable partnership in
all the concerns of life that prevents alb
solutely any desire to take undue ad-
vantage. 1t establishes between son and
father feeling of mutual dependence
and relation that nothing can break.
In such family discord cannot make its
appearance and dishonor has no place.
One incident in his career Mr.. Armour
speaks Of with pardonable pride When
his mother told his father that Philip
intended to go to California, the father
thought Il few moments and then said
''Philip, you can go. | can trust you.
l know that you will not do discredit to
u.s." And now, after an honorable
career, the business man looks back and
remembers the words of the father who
has gone the way of all flesh, and thinks
with pleasure that that father never re-
called those words. The same delight
full relations which exist between Mr..
Armour and his children exist also be-
tween him and his brothers.
His mother now passed away-had
remarkable business faculties. She was
presented from week to week with the
balance sheets of the various houses of
the Armours. Mr.. Philip D. says on
some occasions she would look over the
figures and would remark: 'Isn't broth
er so-and-so showing bad balance sheet
this week? Is lie not doing badly? You
must not let him run behind; you must
put your hand down and help him.
You must all stand together" 'tAnd,"
said Mr.. Armour, I'VE brothers do stand
by each other. 1 would give my last
dollar before l would see any one of
them fall"
In his business career Mr.. Armour has
shown his appreciation of the faithful
services of his employees by promoting
them one by one. One of his partners,
Mr.. Cudahy, was poor Irish boy whom
he took in charge, and who, developing
splendid business capacity, was ad-
vanced from stage to stage until he is
now partner and a very wealthy man.
1t is popularity of the Cudahy family
that all the members of it have become
noted for their business success, though
all started from the ranks of the poor.
One of them is the we'll known Michael
Cudahy, of Ch cago, a noted speculator
in western markets. Mr.. Armour speaks
in the highest terms of praise of the
Cudahy boys, and says he has watched
their rise and progress with great pleas
ure.